Today, Gregory H. Johnson, Colonel (Ret), was named executive director for the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) – the nonprofit entity selected by NASA to manage the utilization of the International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory. Col. Johnson will assume his role effective September 1, 2013.

As executive director, Col. Johnson will lead the CASIS organization to identify novel applications and new partnership opportunities advancing use of our nation's orbiting laboratory.

“Col. Johnson’s combination of experience within our nation's space program, leadership skills and familiarity with the aerospace industry make him an ideal fit for CASIS,” said CASIS Board of Directors Chair Dr. France Cordova. “With Col. Johnson's appointment by the Board, a critical role within the organization has been filled. He will drive forward the mission of CASIS, which is to enable and maximize use of the ISS National Laboratory as a unique resource for scientific discovery, technology development and education."

The ISS U.S. National Laboratory is focused on accelerating basic discoveries and innovation in areas that require microgravity and other extreme conditions uniquely provided by space. The facility offers opportunities for basic and applied research in the biological sciences, biotechnology, human health, physical and materials science, Earth and space imaging, and engineering research and development that will both advance our efforts in space and contribute to improving life on our planet.

“It is an honor to accept the role of executive director with CASIS and promote the benefits of conducting research on the ISS,” said incoming CASIS Executive Director Col. Gregory H. Johnson. “To see the strides this organization has made in less than two years of existence is highly encouraging, and I look forward to working alongside the CASIS staff as we continue to enhance the scope of spaceflight research and enable groundbreaking innovations for the benefit of humankind.”

Col. Johnson was selected as a NASA Astronaut in 1998 and ultimately piloted two Space Shuttle missions (STS-123 and STS-134, both aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour) where he spent nearly 32 days in orbit and contributed to the assembly of the ISS. In October 2011, Col. Johnson began a rotational assignment as the associate director of external programs at NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, OH. In that role, Col. Johnson managed all public affairs, outreach and educational programs at the Center.

Before NASA, Col. Johnson was a decorated officer and pilot with the United States Air Force. Col. Johnson flew 34 combat missions in support of Operation Desert Storm and 27 missions during Operation Southern Watch. In 1994, he was assigned to the 445th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards Air Force Base, where he flew and tested the F-15C/E, NF-15B and other aircraft. During his nearly 25 years in the U.S. Air Force, Col. Johnson logged over 5,000 flight hours in more than 50 different aircraft.

Col. Johnson received his B.S. in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Air Force Academy, his M.S. in flight structures engineering from Columbia University and his M.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

# # #

About CASIS: The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) was selected by NASA in July 2011 to maximize use of the International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory through 2020. CASIS is dedicated to supporting and accelerating innovations and new discoveries that will enhance the health and wellbeing of humankind and our planet. The CASIS goal is to bring the magic of space down to earth. For more information, visit www.iss-casis.org.

About the ISS National Laboratory: In 2005, Congress designated the U.S. portion of the International Space Station as the nation's newest national laboratory to maximize its use for improving life on Earth, promoting collaboration among diverse users and advancing STEM education. This unique laboratory environment is available for use by other U.S. government agencies and by academic and private institutions, providing access to the permanent microgravity setting, vantage point in low earth orbit and varied environments of space. The ISS National Laboratory Office at NASA’s Johnson Space Center currently facilitates research initiatives on board the station’s National Lab, but management of America’s only in-orbit laboratory is transitioning to CASIS.

We first reported this back in May, per anik's info on the ISS schedule thread, but now it's official. We were also told privately back in January that Tim Peake had been assigned to this flight, but it is understood that there were objections to him getting the short mission, which is why it went to Denmark (the lowest financial contributor to HSF out of Germany/France/Italy/UK). So, congrats Denmark on your first astronaut, but shame it will only be a short mission.

N° 29–2013: Andreas Mogensen set for Soyuz mission to Space Station in 2015

28 August 2013

ESA's Danish astronaut Andreas Mogensen has been assigned to be launched on a Soyuz spacecraft from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in September 2015 for a mission to the International Space Station.

This 10-day mission will be Andreas's first flight into space and the first ever space mission by a Danish astronaut.

The flight is directly connected to the new era in ISS operations: two experienced spacefarers from the USA and Russia will work on the Station for one year from May 2015. During his stay onboard the ISS, he will conduct a series of experiments preparing future missions and testing new technologies.

"I'm happy to announce this mission as this is already the fifth flight assignment for the class recruited in 2009," said Thomas Reiter, ESA’s Director of Human Spaceflight and Operations.

"With first of the new class, Luca Parmitano, currently working on the Space Station, and three other astronauts already training for their imminent missions, ESA's new astronauts are very busy.

“Thanks to the decisions of the Member States at the Ministerial Council last November, we will be able to fulfil our commitment to fly all six newly selected astronauts before the end of 2017,” said Mr Reiter.

"This mission is the fulfilment of a life-long dream and the culmination of many years of hard work and training,” said Andreas Mogensen.

“I am excited to be able to participate in ESA’s outstanding programme of science and technology development on board the International Space Station and I am honoured to represent Denmark and Europe in space. The mission is a unique opportunity for Europe to develop and test the technologies necessary for the future of human space exploration."

New technology and science mission

The launch of the mission will take place on 30 September, 2015 with the launch of Soyuz TMA-18 (44S) and it will end on 10 October, when Andreas will land with Soyuz TMA-16 (42S).

During his flight, Andreas will test novel ways of interaction between the ground and space crews with a mobile device that allows astronauts to operate it hands-free and with several multi-user communication techniques. The system will have also advanced 3D visualisation and augmented reality –features that will be fully exploited with added wearable computers and cameras to allow the general public to follow activities on the ISS 'through the eyes of an ESA astronaut' potentially in real time.

Andreas's short mission is an excellent opportunity for several science studies, particularly in life science. By adding samples and measurements from a short-duration mission astronaut to material gathered and being collected during long-duration missions, the value of the biomedical statistics is increased. All the instrumentation needed for physiology, biology and material science experiments is already available in the Columbus laboratory and samples can be returned quickly back to Earth for further analysis.

A short-duration mission is also perfect for testing a new generation of health sensors, vital measurement devices and electro-muscle-mobility devices. These have direct benefit for future exploration missions and even sooner on Earth, for instance with operators of heavy machinery or with rehabilitation after sports injuries.

Andreas will be specially suited too: he will assess a new ‘skinsuit’ during normal daily activities. This is tight garment made from elastic material mimicking Earth gravity and thus passively mitigating deconditioning of an astronaut’s body during spaceflight.

Along with the Soyuz arrival, the ISS will host up to nine persons for a while – a record that has not been broken since retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011.

Between Luca's ongoing mission and flight of Andreas in 2015, ESA astronauts Alexander Gerst and Samantha Cristoforetti, are scheduled for launch in 2014 for long-duration missions to the Station. After Andreas, the next European destined for space will be Tim Peake, who will start his long-duration mission on the ISS as a member of the Expedition 46/47 in December 2015.

High-flying engineer

This new technology packed mission will be a dream flight for an aerospace engineer like Andreas. Not only will the mission include many firsts and demonstrations, but also Andreas will fly as the flight engineer in the ‘left seat’ of Soyuz, making him second-in-command of their vehicle.

Andreas was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 2 November 1976, and he received a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College London, UK, in 1999, followed by a doctorate in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas, Austin, USA, in 2007.

He was selected as an ESA astronaut in May 2009 and completed the astronaut basic training programme in November 2010 with the five other astronauts of the 2009 class. Andreas is a qualified Eurocom at the Columbus Control Centre in Munich, where he has been communicating with the astronauts on the International Space Station.

In addition to his training and work activities, Andreas worked for ESA on the Lunar Lander programme at ESTEC, Noordwijk, the Netherlands, where he was involved in the design of the guidance, navigation and control system for a precision lunar landing.

From his homebase at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany, Andreas will start his mission training with the partners of the International Space Station. This will take him to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, USA, and Star City, near Moscow, Russia, as well as Japan and Canada.

Andreas blogs about space exploration and his astronaut training activities in Danish at videnskab.dk/profil/andreas-mogensen.

About the European Space Agency

The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. It is an intergovernmental organisation, created in 1975, with the mission to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space delivers benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.

ESA has 20 Member States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Den-mark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, of whom 18 are Member States of the EU.

ESA has Cooperation Agreements with eight other Member States of the EU. Canada takes part in some ESA programmes under a Cooperation Agreement.

ESA is also working actively with the EU on implementing the Galileo and Copernicus programmes.

By coordinating the financial and intellectual resources of its members, ESA can undertake programmes and activities far beyond the scope of any single European country.

ESA develops the launchers, spacecraft and ground facilities needed to keep Europe at the forefront of global space activities.

Today, it launches satellites for Earth observation, navigation, telecommunications and astronomy, sends probes to the far reaches of the Solar System and cooperates in the human exploration of space.

Wow, Gennady flying again, for his fifth long duration mission! Every time I think that man has likely made his last flight, his name appears on yet another manifest. If Gennady were a NASA astronaut, he'd probably be grounded now due to hitting his lifetime orbital radiation absorption limit.

Wow, Gennady flying again, for his fifth long duration mission! Every time I think that man has likely made his last flight, his name appears on yet another manifest. If Gennady were a NASA astronaut, he'd probably be grounded now due to hitting his lifetime orbital radiation absorption limit.

So, do the Russians have laxer radiation exposure criteria than other ISS partners? Or, is it just that, for whatever reason, Padalka has less risk? It seems that in the United States, some astronauts are grounded for exposure whereas others are not (e.g., D. Thomas on Exp. 6, being replaced by Pettit). Does family history and health come into play?

Yury Lonchakov will be formally discharged from his job on September 14, Irina Rogova of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center told RIA Novosti.

Quote

Rogova’s boss, Sergei Krikalev, was cited by Russian media as saying that Lonchakov “found a more interesting job,” but did not elaborate. Rogova could not name Lonchakov’s new job.

Quote

The Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center has been rocked by reorganization problems since 2009, when it was transferred from the Defense Ministry to the civilian Federal Space Agency. An unnamed Russian cosmonaut told the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper last year that the prolonged reorganization had affected cosmonauts’ income and career prospects, breeding discontent in the ranks.

NASA and its international partners have appointed future crew members for the International Space Station.

NASA astronaut Tim Kopra and European Space Agency astronaut Tim Peake are scheduled to launch in December 2015 and return to Earth in spring 2016. They will join the Expedition 45 crew members in orbit and will remain aboard as part of Expedition 46 with yearlong expedition Commander Scott Kelly and Flight Engineer Mikhail Kornienko.

This will be the second long-duration spaceflight for Kopra, a former U.S. Army helicopter pilot and graduate of the U.S. Military Academy. Kopra was a flight engineer aboard the station during Expedition 20 in 2009. This will be the first spaceflight for Peake, a former British Army helicopter pilot and graduate of the Royal Military Academy.

NASA astronauts Gregory Chamitoff and Ronald Garan are leaving the agency. Chamitoff is joining the faculty of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, and the University of Sydney in Australia. Garan will work on a range of new entrepreneurial and humanitarian efforts.

"Greg and Ron will certainly be missed by the Astronaut Office," said Bob Behnken, NASA's chief astronaut. "Greg's passion for sharing the spaceflight experience will serve him well as he begins a new adventure in academia and continues to inspire the next generation of innovators and explorers. I'll miss Ron both as a contributor to our office and as a classmate. The entire office is grateful for their service to NASA."

Chamitoff began his 18-year NASA career in 1995 as a space shuttle guidance and control officer in mission control at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998. He flew in space twice, in 2008 as a flight engineer and science officer for Expeditions 17 and 18 aboard the International Space Station, and as a mission specialist during STS-134 in 2011, the penultimate shuttle mission. During his most recent mission, Chamitoff participated in two spacewalks to complete assembly of the International Space Station, taking part in the installation of the Alphamagnetic Spectrometer. He has spent more than 198 days in space.

Garan, who joined the agency in 2000, is ending a 13-year NASA career that included more than 178 days in space and four spacewalks. Garan flew in space twice, first in 2008 as a space shuttle Discovery mission specialist on STS-124, and again in 2011 aboard the International Space Station as a flight engineer for Expeditions 27 and 28. Garan retired from the Air Force as a colonel in 2009 after 25 years of service. He has logged more than 5,000 flight hours in more than 30 aircraft types. He recently served within NASA’s Open Government Initiative.